Review: Days of Rage by Brad Taylor

Another great read by Brad Taylor. Days of Rage is similar to other books in the Taylor's Pike Logan series where the action is almost non-stop. 

Days of Rage begins with the summer Olympic games in Munich, Germany, 1972, where a group of Israeli athletes were killed in a horrific terrorist attack. This event sets the stage for many of the characters and their motivations throughout the plot. Skip to present day where Pike and his team Taskforce, are brought on to finish the job of surveillance against a serious threat to national security.

Initially the quest to find a thumbdrive and its contents moves the story forward. There is sensitive information on this thumbdrive that the Oversight Council is afraid of getting into the wrong hands. Since Pike's team is best suited to thwart terrorists efforts they are called in to clean up the mess. Plus, Pike is more than willing to honor his two fallen comrades by finding out if in fact their deaths were an accident or something worse.

It is not long into the mission when Pike and the Taskforce realize that they are being watched and the death of the comrades may not have been the accident it appeared to be. This makes Pike a very angry man... that is until Jennifer is able to reel him in. She seems to be the only reason why he hasn't blown a fuse yet. It's because of Jennifer that he teams up with another team who may (or may not) want the same thing they do.

Days of Rage is a multilayered plot that causes the readers to question everyone at play. There's the Russians who are hellbent on getting revenge on America, the Israeli's who want to avenge their fallen athletes and find the truth as to who was to blame for the Munich massacre, and the American's who may have hidden agendas. There is just so much going on. At times it's exhilarating but also exhausting. 

What was particularly interesting in this addition to the Pike Logan series is that it seemed to be more about female power. There's one woman, Shoshanna, who seems like a real badass. Who couldn't love an empath? I almost liked her more than Jennifer, although her acrobatic prowess is a pretty awesome ability. 

Ultimately, Days of Rage is a great read. Lovers of espionage and political thrillers. Taylor uses a true event as the catalyst for a literary thrillride in the dangerous world of counter-terrorist efforts. Although this is only the second novel I've read in this series, it will not be the last.    ****

Copy provided by Penguin Group via Netgalley